Today we’d like to introduce you to Adrian O’Dell.
Hi Adrian, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself
I was born on the Keesler Airforce Base in Biloxi, Mississippi to Alvin R. O’Dell (Wideband Communications Technician) and Dianne O’Dell. I started an Aerial Photography and Video business as a tribute to my dad and turning my longtime hobby into a business.
Growing up next to Mansfield Lahm Airport, I was fascinated by all of the airshows and various aviation-related events over the years.
I started “flying” in high school as a High Jumper at Crestview High School, and from there I went on to soar with the Eagles of Ashland University as an All-American Athlete.
While in college I started exploring marketing and working with small businesses to be effective with their marketing efforts.
I graduated from AU with a BSBA in Finance and Management of Information Systems and an entrepreneurial frame of mind.
I ended up working for Western & Southern Financial Group after college as a Registered Representative and then a Staff Manager.
I began transitioning more into marketing in 2015 and moved to San Pedro, Belize to work in Real Estate and work on building a retirement home for my parents. That is where my love of drones was officially birthed.
What did I love most about discovering them?
I always like to get the window seat whenever I fly so I can see the view from above. For me, flying drones was like having a window seat to the world while my feet were on the ground. I was hooked!
I still love to travel (for the past 10 years prior to the Pandemic, I visited 20 different countries and lived in Belize for 2 years). Over the years I have worked to fine-tune my craft of Mapping Missions, Real Estate Photography, and Construction Update Videos,
I started ARO Aerial, Inc. four years later in May of 2020. ARO Aerial is an Ohio-based, Minority-Owned business that primarily serves the construction and real estate markets with a focus on aerial photography and video.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
Well, I won’t say smooth sailing but I have been nimble on my feet if you will. Flying drones started off as a hobby that I really wasn’t too focused on making a living by doing. The college I worked for was faced with a decision when the pandemic began and as a result, I lost my job and had some decisions to make of my own.
So, in my mind I said, let’s make this work. I was contacted by a roofing company and ended up subcontracting with them to do roof inspections. Not being a big fan of hopping on roofs for no reason, I used my drone to get the prelimary look to see if there was damage that merited closer attention.
Knowledge became key to how I would move forward in this industry. I took classes on the fly to learn what was required in the industry and was able to learn what I needed to integrate drones into a variety of settings. I also did a bunch of experiencial flying where I just practiced doing for fun what I wanted to do to make money. Every dime that I could reinvest in the business I did and worked to grow it. I didn’t want to take on debt so I just built things piece by piece.
Just when I opened the door to a new opportunity, I crashed my drone and lost my income generator. I took to the internet to find a reasonably priced replacement which I was able to secure and continue on. From there, it was a process of wash, rinse, and repeat. Explore the market, make sure I had the equipment to do the job, leverage the experience for the next opportunity.
Here I am looking for new ways to penetrate this growing market. The biggest barriers right now is that the enterprise-level equipment needed to really get things moving is very expensive. It seems that I am going to have to break my no-debt rule it I am going to be able to appropriately expand.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Prior to covid, I did a lot of work in the construction space providing video updates for construction sites and experimenting with 3D Mapping and Modeling projects. The volunteer opportunity closed up around the same time that I lost my job so I had no choice but to pivot.
I learned many things about the principles of photography and videography and was mentored by a close friend who I worked alongside during the construction site work that I was doing. I leveraged that experience into capturing footage for real estate companies both residential and commercial.
Groundwork became another aspect that the market demanded so I began using my DSLR and learning how to shoot and edit RAW footage. I added 360 cameras to the mix and learned how to add those views to by mix. This led to expanding into Virtual Tours and other forms of integrating 360 imagery into my workflow.
Now I feel like I have a pretty complete offering and can hold my own in the market. I had to quickly learn how to be effective and use my networking skills to grow. I like a good challenge and have learned to be more than just another guy with a drone. I’ve taken multiple certification courses to facilitate knowing more than the average drone pilot. On top of that, I think I’m a pretty likable guy!
Who else deserves credit in your story?
There are many people along the way that helped all of this come together. My dad has always been my solid sounding board and a voice of reason. My friend Jeremy Miller provided much guidance on how and what to shoot from a photography and video point of view. Working with DRM Productions in Mansfield helped to shape my scope of work for 2D/3D project workflows. Working with Edward Akinyemi from the NECIC helped me to keep the basic principles of running a successful business in mind. And of course, my wife is always there to help me stay organized and keep focused. Another mentor-type relationship is the one that exists between me and David Young, the owner of Drone Launch Academy. I’ve taken many courses through them and that has led to many discussions with David and his team. This collective grouping of people has helped me skill up and do so safely and in harmony with FAA drone regulations and compliance factors.
Pricing:
- Starting prices are usually around 100 t0 150
- Flight plans are customizable, just ask.
Contact Info:
- Email: aroaerial@gmail.com
- Website: https://aroaerial.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aroaerial/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aroaerial/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/inc_aro
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFrFvFySARshCFODBBUNMBQ
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/aro-aerial-mansfield
